“I can’t tell you how glad I am to have found you,” said Meilin as she took her seat next to Hei.

Hei noticed her eyes lingering on the pot Tianlan was stirring, so he brought out a roll of bread and a knife from his storage space, cut a cavity in it and held it out to Tianlan, who poured some of the stew onto it.

He then handed it to Meilin who was almost salivating at the mouth.

“Here.”

“Thank you!”

She held it and felt as the heat seeped into her hands, warming her cold fingers.

Having the food right in front of her made her stomach start to growl.

She didn’t wait very long at all before sinking her teeth into the meal.

“!”

Her eyes shot open as she shifted her gaze between the two boys.

She couldn’t tell if it was the bread or the stew that was better, but the combination was a match made in heaven.

“It’s so good!”

“Glad to hear it.”

She continued to eat, finishing the bread in what felt like an instant.

She looked down to her now empty hands and couldn’t help but sigh in regret.

That was when she saw an identical roll land in her hands.

She looked up to Hei with tears in her eyes.

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

“No, really. I mean it. I think this is the best meal I’ve ever had.”

“High praise indeed.”

Hei glanced at Shin Mu who was eyeing Meilin’s bread with a clear look of envy.

“There’s more where that came from, Mu.”

Within seconds, a roll of bread flew through the air, landing in Shin Mu’s hands.

“Th… Thanks.”

He looked down at the bread, savoured the fragrance, then brought it to his mouth, hesitating for a moment before taking a bite.

The moment the flavour hit his tongue, he was taken back to peaceful times.

“It’s delicious,” he said as his tears dropped onto the bread.

“Hey!” yelled Tianlan. “Don’t’ ruin it with your salt-water. It’s a very delicate balance, you know?”

“R-Right!”

Shin Mu used his arm to wipe his tears away and continued to enjoy the first meal he had eaten in a long time.

“Eating a home-cooked meal by a campfire. It’s just like the movies,” said Meilin.

“You never did answer my question, Meilin. What are you doing here? Didn’t you say you were going back home?”

“A…. Haha…. You see, the thing is…”

“You got lost, didn’t you?”

Meilin lowered her head in shame.

“I did.”

“How did that happen?”

“It’s a long story.”

“Save it,” said Tianlan. “We don’t do long stories around here. Isn’t that right, Hei?”

“Haha… Right… Anyway, what are you going to do now, Meilin? Do you want me to escort you home?”

“I thought you would never ask. Please do. I don’t think I can find it by myself, and if I’m being honest, I’m afraid to travel alone.”

“Okay then. But there are a few things I need to do first.”

“Mm.”

With that, the conversation came to a halt.

Meilin decided to bring it back to life. It had been a while since she had anyone to talk to.

“Can you introduce me to everyone?”

“Sure. I’m Shao Hei. This is my brother, Shao Tianlan. And this is Shin Mu who we recently crossed paths with.”

“Shao? I’ve never heard of that clan before.”

“You wouldn’t have heard of us. We’re just a tiny little clan.”

Meilin frowned.

“A small clan? And you’re that powerful?”

“Well, fortunate encounters and whatnot.”

“Wait a minute… Didn’t I hear you say something about a power that hadn’t left your clan for a thousand years?”

“Uh…”

“Oh! You must be a secret clan! One of those sleeping giants! I’m right, aren’t I?”

Hei exchanged awkward glances with Tianlan.

This wasn’t part of the plan…

“Look, Meilin. I’m sorry, but-”

When Meilin noticed the strange atmosphere, she immediately covered her mouth.

Her body trembled as her face turned pale.

“I wasn’t supposed to say that, was I? Does this mean I have to die now? I-I promise I won’t say a word! You promise too, right, Shin Mu?”

“…”

The whole cave became silent for a moment.

“Please! I was just kidding! I don’t want to die yet!”

“… Nobody has to die, Meilin. We’re really just a small clan.”

“Mm! A small clan!” she said while frantically nodding her head.

“…”

***

Meanwhile, at a place about two days away on foot, a man stood suspended in mid-air.

He was dressed in black, almost blending in with the night sky.

He looked down at the mountain in front of him that looked as if it had been twisted into a spiral and frowned.

“What’s the meaning of this?”

He lowered his altitude until he reached the ground, then placed his palm down, expanding his spiritual perception into the soil.

“Nothing? How can there be nothing?”

He suddenly felt a gust of chilly wind. It was unnaturally cold when compared to the ambient temperature, and as such, it sent alarm bells ringing through his head.

“Who’s there?! Show yourself!”

In front of him, a few metres away, the ground froze over as a white mist enveloped the area.

Out of that mist came a silver-haired young man who had dark circles under his eyes and was wearing white robes adorned with blue snowflake patterns.

“Someone from the Lanxiang Clan? What are you doing here?”

“I would ask the same of you…” said the young man in a drowsy voice.

He needed to take a breath after that one sentence.

“Why are you skulking around out here…? What were you looking for…?”

The man in black frowned.

“I do believe that’s none of your business.”

“Quite the opposite, actually… You see… this just so happens to be a place of interest for me… and anyone who appears here…”

He narrowed his eyes, sending several streaks of qi flying toward the man in black.

“Humph! Don’t be so presumptuous!”

The man in black released his own blades of qi which collided with the young man’s, resulting in bursts of chilly wind radiating in all directions.

The man in black’s eyes widened slightly when his attacks only managed to neutralise his opponent’s.

“It seems we’re evenly matched, so why not we drop this here? Otherwise, we’ll both suffer unnecessary injuries.”

The young man in white seemed to be having difficulty keeping his eyes open, but he managed to squeeze out a few words.

“No can do…” he said, his mouth opening wide for a yawn. “You see… I’m somewhat desperate for information… and you seem to have plenty… So start talking…”

He took a deep breath.

“What connection do you have to the Crimson Moon Sect?”

“I’m hardly inclined to speak,” said the man in black. “But as a show of sincerity, I don’t mind sharing this small amount with you. My relation to the Crimson Moon Sect is quite simple. I recently received some intel on their whereabouts and immediately rushed over to destroy them. I assume it’s the same for you.”

“That’s a solid story… Really, it is… I have no particular reason to doubt it…. But as I said… I’m somewhat desperate at the moment… I can’t let any leads slip away… So, as it stands, you have two choices… Come quietly for interrogation… Or be beaten into submission… Please choose quickly.”

“Interrogation? How can I be sure this isn’t a trap? You could very well be working with the Crimson Moon yourself.”

The young man in white scratched the back of his head while yawning.

“… I see there’s no point in further discussion.”

He drew his sword from its sheath, releasing a burst of frigid qi as he did, then disappeared from view.

The man in black sighed and drew his own sword before dashing in to meet his opponent head-on.

***

Back in the cave, the awkward silence continued until Meilin decided to liven things up a little.

“Where are my manners? I’ve been introduced to all of you, but I have yet to introduce myself. My name is Lanxiang Meilin. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“Lanxiang?” asked Tianlan.

“Oh? Are you familiar with my clan?”

“Somewhat. Do you know a girl called Meili?”

“That’s my elder sister’s name. Have the two of you met?”

“You could say that. She’s a member of my sect.”

“Hm? Are you also a student of the Academy?”

“The Academy? I’m talking about the Shimmering Sword Sect.”

“But… My sister isn’t a member of the Shimmering Sword Sect… You must be talking about someone else.”

Tianlan manipulated his qi to project an image of the person he was thinking of, and when Meilin saw the young woman in front of her, she pointed in shock.

“That’s her! What’s she doing at the Shimmering Sword Sect?”

“I don’t know, but I remember a certain mission that I saw a while back. It was titled Snow Girl. The objective was to find information on a missing person. She was described as a cultivator of ice-based techniques who was sixteen years old and had a special blade with her.”

His eyes shifted to the white sword attached to Meilin’s waist.

“It seems I’ve found her.”

“So Big Sis was looking for me… I didn’t think she would do that.”

“Chotto Matte,” said Hei as he crossed his arms and tilted his head.

“What is it?” asked Meilin.

“Tianlan.”

“Mm?”

“Didn’t you say you saw that mission about a week after joining the sect?”

“That’s right.”

“Hm… Meilin.”

“Yes?”

“Did you know that the Crimson Moon kept a record of its imports and exports?”

“They did?”

“They did. And I just so happened to find a profile of you among the entries. It appears you were captured several weeks after Tianlan saw that mission… Curious, no?”

“Um…”

“It appears, to me, that you went missing long before you were captured by the Crimson Moon. And your disappearance was shocking enough to warrant a large-scale search…”

“…”

“It almost sounds like you ran away. But that can’t be right, can it? After all, you’re going back home, aren’t you? Why would you return to the place that you ran away from? Or could it be that your sister lives somewhere else and was holding you against your will?”

“That’s!”

Meilin looked down at her two pointer fingers which were pressed together.

“That’s…”

She desperately tried to think of a way out of having to explain things.

That was when she noticed Tianlan’s eyes looking at her.

It made her remember something.

She turned to Hei; her expression as serious as she could muster.

“It’s a long story!”

She looked to Tianlan, waiting for him to save her.

When he opened his mouth to speak, she breathed an internal sigh of relief.

But then a hand rose into the air, causing Tianlan to say nothing.

Meilin pouted and looked over to Hei who had now retracted his hand and was resting his chin on his palm.

“Nice try.”

***

Meanwhile, at the spiralling mountain peak, there were now broken pillars of ice sprawled about the place.

Each of them was emitting white mist that would fall to the ground and hover there, making it seem as if the clouds had come down to rest.

Amidst the chaotic scene, a sigh could be heard.

It came from a young man dressed in white scraps of clothing stained with blood.

He was holding his snow-white sword in one hand and had the man in black’s neck tightly gripped in the other.

As he walked, the man in black continually clawed at his hand, trying to get himself free, but he failed to muster enough strength.

“Release me at once!”

The young man let out a long yawn. It almost seemed as if he couldn’t hear what was being said and was about to drift off into a nap.

“You’re making a huge mistake, Boy!”

The young man raised his arm to wipe away the tears that had formed during his previous yawn.

But then he yawned again.

“Mark my words. You’ll pay for this!”

It was only then that the young man seemed to become aware of his surroundings.

He looked down at the man in black, then forward again.

He shrugged his shoulders.

“Eh… Stuff happens.”